A Spot Of Trouble
by millstone1005
Summary: [Complete] Ryan gets into a spot of trouble with a girl. Set early in season 1.
1. Chapter 1

**Title:** A Spot Of Trouble   
**Disclaimer:** I own nothing related to The O.C.. Not for profit.  
**Description:** Ryan gets into a spot of trouble with a girl. (set in early season 1)

* * *

**Chapter 1**

As Ryan sat in the Chief of Police's office, trying not to make any eye contact with the girl sitting next to him, he beat his head against the wall (figuratively) and called himself an idiot (silently).

Ryan leaned forward in his seat and rubbed his eyes. He still couldn't believe that he got himself into this mess. He couldn't understand how he could be so stupid. No, wait, yes, he did. Stupid hormones. God-damn _Teen Male Hormones_, as the (lady) health teacher back at Chino Hills used to call them. Ryan groaned to himself. He could just hear her in his head, saying it, with disgust dripping from her voice.

Ryan sighed and sat back, fiddling with his wristcuff. Out of the corner of his eye he saw the girl -- Jane he thought her name was -- turn her head towards him. He turned to look at her as well, meeting her shy smile with a brief half-smile of his own before he quickly turned away again. The daughter of the chief of police. God. Couldn't he have picked another girl -- any other girl -- at that party? There were dozens there. But no, the daughter of the chief of police had to catch his eye, and vice-versa. Just his luck.

And so they were here, the two of them, sitting in the Chief's office, waiting for him to arrive. Ryan almost wished that those beat cops had arrested him instead. That way, he could have avoided The Wrath Of A Father, and The Wrath Of A Cop, all rolled into one.

Ryan got up and walked over to the window behind the Chief's desk. He crossed his arms and looked out over the parking lot.

And what about the Cohens? What were they going to say? Ryan had only been with them for ... Ryan looked up at the dark sky and thought for a moment. Wow, had been two months already? It didn't seem that long. It seemed like he had just gotten there. Well, in some repects it felt that way. In other respects, it felt like a lot longer. A lot had happened since that night that his brother bullied him into stealing that car.

And here he was in trouble, again. After he had promised the Cohens _no more trouble_. Ryan put his hand over his face. It just figured. He knew -- he just **knew** -- that someday he'd screw things up for himself, get into some kind of trouble, and ruin the chance for a new life that the Cohens had given him. It looked like that day had arrived sooner than he expected.

And all because Ryan answered the phone the other day.

.oOo.

_Ryan had just gotten home from soccer practice, dead tired. As he entered the pool house, the phone was ringing. Ryan quickly dropped his school bookbag and his duffle with his soccer stuff in it and went over to answer the phone. It still felt weird. It still took a little getting used to that the pool house had its own phone number, which was his now. _

_"Hello?" _

_"Hey! Ryan, my man!" _

_Ryan smiled. One of his co-workers at the Crab Shack. "Hey, Rick. What's up?" _

_"What are you doing Saturday night?" _

_Ryan thought for a moment. Seth had said something about a ninja marathon, but... _

_"Nothing, why?" _

_"How would you like to go to a party? Everyone's going." _

_Ryan considered. He hadn't been to a party in a little while, and this could be fun. "Sure." _

.oOo.

And that was how it started. Ryan turned around and leaned back against the window and shoved his hands into his pockets. He looked over at the girl and she looked back at him. Their eyes met and they both smiled. Just like it happened at the party.

.oOo.

_Ryan and his Crab Shack co-workers had carpooled to the party in Rick's old second-hand SUV. After parking down the street, which was packed with cars -- most of them old and rusted out -- they all piled out of the car and headed in the direction of the loud music. _

_When they reached the house, it was packed. Ryan followed Rick and the others through the house and out into the back yard, where the kegs were. He got himself a beer and stood back and looked around. He nodded to himself. Not bad. Lots of nice looking girls. Most wearing too much make-up and not enough clothes, although that was par for the course in places like this. It reminded him of the last party that he went to with Trey back in Chino. _

_Ryan didn't come here looking for a girl, specifically, athough he wouldn't say no if the opportunity arose. He was still hoping to get somewhere with Marissa, even though she was still waffling between him and Luke. Anything he found here would have to be one-night-only and he'd have to keep it to himself. Ryan smiled. That he could do. _

_After hanging around for a while, drinking a few beers, and talking to a number of different girls -- and avoiding dancing which he hated -- Ryan finally saw the girl that he couldn't take his eyes off of. Not because she was the most beautiful girl there. In fact, studying her, Ryan decided he'd have to characterize her as quietly pretty. _

_He figured that most guys would probably look right past her, with her long straight brown hair, her glasses, and her ordinary-looking t-shirt and jeans. But there was just something about her that Ryan couldn't explain, but he couldn't ignore. In some ways, she reminded him of Theresa. The down-to-earth type who would care more about what was going on in the Middle East than what the latest fashion trends were in Paris. _

_And Ryan seemed to have caught her eye, too. He could see her giving him shy little glances, then quickly looking away and giggling with her girlfriends. Finally he was able to catch and hold her eye. He smiled at her, and she returned his smile. That gave him the confidence to approach her. He took a deep breath, threw away his now-empty beer cup, and set out. _

.oOo.

Ryan smiled to himself as he remembered. Then he moved away from the window and walked around the desk and sat back down on the leather couch next to Jane to wait.

* * *

To Be Continued. 


	2. Chapter 2

**Title:** A Spot Of Trouble  
**Disclaimer:** I own nothing related to _The O.C._. Not for profit.  
**Description:** Ryan gets into a spot of trouble with a girl. (Set in early season 1.)

* * *

**Chapter 2**

After Ryan nervously checked his watch – the one that the Cohens had bought for him – for what seemed like the millionth time, he heard Jane chuckle softly beside him.

"My dad will be here soon. Our house isn't far away."

Ryan turned to her and gave her a little smile even though he wasn't sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing. Jane then hesitantly reached over and took his hand. He guessed that she could tell he was a little nervous and wanted to comfort him. And it worked. The warm, soft feel of her hand in his made his breath quicken and his heartbeat speed up. He could feel a warmth spreading throughout his body, just remembering what the two of them had been up to earlier. It took his mind off of the impending doom, at least momentarily.

Ryan smiled his thanks to her. He had to resist the urge to lean over and kiss her. Her father could arrive any time, and he didn't want to get them into any more hot water than they already were. Ryan settled for holding tightly onto her hand and rubbing his thumb along the back of her fingers. As he did so, he thought about when he first took her hand, at the party.

.oOo.

_Ryan had approached the girl that he had his eye on. "Hey."_

_She looked shyly up at him. "Hey."_

"_Would you like to dance?" Ryan didn't like dancing, but he didn't know how else to break the ice with a new girl at a party._

_She exchanged a look with her friends that looked to Ryan a whole lot like "squee". Finally, looked back at him and nodded, then looked down. A shy one, this one._

_Ryan breathed a sigh of relief that she accepted his invitation. Girls just didn't understand how nerve-wracking this was. But now that she did say yes, Ryan could feel himself starting to get excited. He could hardly keep the smile off his face. He automatically reached out and took her hand, not thinking until afterwards that maybe she would be uncomfortable with that. When she seemed to be okay with it, he led her inside the house to where the dancing was going on, in the living room._

_When they joined the other dancers, the song that was playing was a "fast" song, so they didn't touch as they danced. And they didn't talk, either, since the music was too loud to hear over. Ryan felt a little embarrassed and self-conscious at first, since he knew he wasn't the best dancer and was afraid that he'd make a fool of himself in front of everyone, especially this girl that he was beginning to really like. But he quickly got over it when he saw that nobody was paying any attention to him; they were all too busy with what they were doing themselves._

_Having a fast song, though, did give Ryan a chance to study the girl some more as she danced. And the more he watched, the more he liked what he saw. She wasn't overly tall. She had curves in all the right places. Her face, while not strikingly beautiful, was definitely attractive._

_Ryan found that he enjoyed watching her dance. Unlike him, she was quite good at it. The way she moved, smooth and sensual, was definitely turning him on, especially since it seemed to be natural, and not just put on, calculated to drive him crazy. Even though it was. How she moved her hips, those full lips of hers that he couldn't wait to kiss, and her breasts – not too big, not too small – which bounced around as she danced. He couldn't wait to get his hands on those..._

_Just thinking about it, all the things that he wanted to do with her, caused that familiar desire to flare up inside him. Ryan had to look away for a minute and take some deep breaths to calm himself down. His pants were getting uncomfortably tight, and he didn't want to embarrass himself in front of her, or scare her off. He wasn't sure how experienced she was, and he was afraid that if he seemed too eager to get into her pants, she'd shy away._

_Luckily, the song ended shortly thereafter. She stopped dancing, and Ryan was finally able to turn his mind to other things. He looked straight into her eyes and gave her what he hoped was an encouraging smile._

"_Would you like a drink?"_

_She gave him her standard shy smile back. "Sure."_

_Ryan gently took her hand again, and they wound their way through the other partygoers and into the kitchen. When they got there, Ryan saw that some other kids had gotten beer from the fridge, so he headed over that way. He had decided at the start of the night that he wasn't going to drink anything stronger than beer, as he really didn't want to show up back at the Cohens drunk. So he went to the fridge and took out a couple bottles of beer, one for himself and one for the girl._

_She seemed hesitant to take it, but she finally did. Ryan raised his eyebrows at that. He studied her face for a moment. Obviously, she didn't really want the beer. She probably only took it so that people would think she was cool. So that he would think she was cool. Ryan shook his head at that. No. No way. He was the last person who would ever want to encourage someone to drink when they didn't really want to, after all the problems that alcohol had caused in his family._

_In fact, Ryan decided, he didn't need to drink, either._

_Ryan immediately took the beer from her and put both bottles back into the fridge. He then went over to the kitchen table, where there were coolers with cans of soda. He took a can of Coke, then looked over at the girl. She smiled at him, in gratitude, he thought. And joined him at the table, grabbing a can of Sprite for herself._

.oOo.

Back in her father's office, Ryan smiled at Jane and took a chance by putting his arm around her shoulders. She leaned into him, and sighed. All Ryan could think at that moment was how great they got along (well, that and the fact that he found her extremely attractive). He really hoped that he'd be able to see her again, that her father wouldn't forbid them to see each other after everything that happened. He settled in to wait and see.

But he didn't have long to wait, because shortly thereafter, the Chief of Police himself arrived. The first indication was the shadows of two men that could be seen through the frosted glass in the door, then their voices carried their way inside.

Jane whispered to Ryan, "My dad."

Ryan quickly withdrew his arm from around her, and just in time, too. The door opened and a middle-aged man entered. He was dressed in casual clothes, but just from the way he carried himself – well, let's just say that if Ryan didn't already know that he was a cop, Ryan would know that he was a cop. Not to mention a father. The way he was looking at Jane was definitely as a disappointed father.

As Jane's father closed the door behind himself, Ryan sat up straight and held his breath, waiting to see what he would say.

* * *

To Be Continued 


	3. Chapter 3

**Title:** A Spot Of Trouble  
**Disclaimer:** I own nothing related to _The O.C._. Not for profit.  
**Description:** Ryan gets into a spot of trouble with a girl. (Set in early season 1.)

* * *

**Chapter 3**

As Jane watched her father enter the office, close the door, and sit down in a chair across from herself and Ryan, she tried not to be too scared, even though she wasn't quite sure what to expect. She had hardly ever been in any trouble at home, had hardly ever been punished, not counting the times when she was little and got sent to her room for your typical little-kid acting out.

It just figured that the first time she did something even a little bit wrong, she got caught. She tried to at least take heart in the fact that her father looked more disappointed in her than angry. His perfect little girl wasn't so perfect after all, or so little any more.

When her father entered the room, Jane could feel Ryan tense up next to her. She wanted to reassure him that her father wasn't terribly scary, that everything would be okay, but right now she wasn't entirely convinced that was true. So she tensed up herself and waited for her father to start. After studying her and especially Ryan for a long moment, finally he did. It turned out he was kind of pissed off after all.

He leaned forward. "Janie, what's gotten into you? Trespassing on private property? Having sex in public? You know you could have been arrested? You're lucky that those officers recognized you as my daughter and decided to let me handle it."

"That's not what happened –"

Her father continued like she hadn't even spoken. He gestured at Ryan. "And who's this? A new boyfriend?" He turned to Ryan. "How old are you? Are you aware that Jane is only fifteen? If you're over eighteen, that's statutory rape."

Jane responded before Ryan was forced to defend himself. "Dad! He's _sixteen_! And we didn't have sex!" She almost died of embarrassment saying that to her father.

But at least that revelation seemed to take a bit of the wind out of her father's sails. Apparently he had been convinced that Ryan was older. He looked at Ryan quizzically, and after a quick glance at Jane, Ryan nodded to confirm her information for her father.

Her dad cleared his throat, regrouped, and then continued his rant at Ryan. "What did you do? Get her drunk? I swear if you've done anything to hurt my daughter –"

Ryan started to speak, shaking his head emphatically, "No, sir. Of course not –"

Jane interrupted. "_Dad!_ I'm not drunk. I haven't had anything to drink. Not even one beer. And Ryan didn't do anything to hurt me. He wouldn't." She looked tenderly at Ryan and softened her voice. "In fact, he's a really nice guy."

Ryan looked back at her, right into her eyes, and gave her the perfect little smile. She almost swooned.

Jane cleared her throat and turned back to her father. "It wasn't anything like you think. It was _my_ idea to go to the gazebo, not Ryan's. And all we did was make out."

Her father sighed and leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms. "Fine, sweetie. If it wasn't what I think, then tell me what really happened. I'm listening."

Jane looked at Ryan and thought back on that night and tried to figure out a way to tell her father the truth about what happened, while leaving out the parent-unfriendly parts.

.oOo.

_Jane couldn't believe what he just did. First, he noticed that she didn't want the beer. Second, he didn't pressure her into drinking it anyway. And third, he actually gave up drinking beer himself to have a soda with her. It melted her heart. All she could do was stand there and stare at him in awe for a moment. She couldn't believe her luck. Not only was he gorgeous, hot, cute, and sexy, but he was nice, and kind, and considerate, and thoughtful. He was perfect. She didn't know his name, yet, but he was perfect._

_Usually gorgeous guys like this didn't even look her way, much less come up to her in a crowded party (where there were lots of other more beautiful and sexy girls) and ask her to dance, especially since it was obvious that he didn't really dance. And even more unbelievable, he seemed to be turned on by her. She had noticed him watching her dance, and looking at her boobs a lot. She had even taken a quick look down at his, um, package, and she wasn't sure but she thought she saw something there._

_Jane smiled to herself. She really couldn't believe her luck tonight._

_And now here he was, leading her back through the house and out the front door. Jane knew that she should probably go back and find her friends and let them know that she was leaving (assuming that she was), but she didn't want to take the chance of losing this great guy._

_Once they were outside, he turned to her and gave her a tentative smile. "I just thought... it's less crowded out here..."_

_Jane almost swooned. God, that smile. "And less hot and less noisy. Yeah." They shared a laugh. Then she took a chance. "Hey, you know, there's a bench over there, at the bus stop."_

_She pointed across the street. The bench was fortunately empty right now. He followed her gaze and shrugged. "Sure."_

_And then he was such a gentleman, following her over, with a hand occasionally resting lightly on the small of her back, making sure that the road was clear before they crossed, making sure she was okay. She smiled to herself. If only her friends could see her now._

_Once they were seated, he finally introduced himself. "Hey, um... I'm Ryan, by the way."_

"_Jane. I'm fifteen."_

_Jane blushed and looked down. She couldn't believe that she just blurted out her age like that. Just being near him made her nervous. She rolled her eyes at herself. God, what he must have thought of her. He probably thought she was just a baby..._

_But he – Ryan – just smiled and said, "Sixteen."_

_Jane looked back up at him. She could have sworn he was older._

_Ryan continued to talk about where he was from and stuff, and she answered with her info, but her mind was really elsewhere. Those beautiful blue eyes, that brilliant smile, that blond hair, those arms..._

_Eventually she realized that he wasn't talking any more, but was watching her watch him, with a bit of a smile on his face. She blushed again, embarrassed about being caught out like that. Luckily, he didn't seem to mind._

_Now that Ryan had her attention, he asked, "You want to go somewhere?"_

_Jane grinned. Just what she was waiting for. "I know just the place. Come on." She took Ryan's hand and led him down the street._

.oOo.

At this point, Jane's father interrupted her story. "So just like that you took a boy that you just met to the town make-out spot?"

She looked nervously at Ryan for a moment. "Something like that."

Her father nodded. "Uh-huh. Okay, well, go on, I can't wait to hear what happens next."

* * *

To Be Continued 


	4. Chapter 4

**Title:** A Spot Of Trouble  
**Disclaimer:** I own nothing related to _The O.C._. Not for profit.  
**Description:** Ryan gets into a spot of trouble with a girl. (Set in early season 1.)

* * *

**Chapter 4**

Jane's father prodded her. "Go on with your story, Janie."

Jane took a deep breath and continued.

.oOo.

_Jane took Ryan's hand and led him down the street. "I know just the place. Come on."_

_She knew exactly where she wanted to go. She'd been wanting to go there ever since she'd started hearing about it in junior high. The gazebo on the Murphys' estate. Everybody went there to make out. It was like the place to go for the kids at her school. It was beautiful, surrounded by woods, lots of privacy. She'd heard all her girlfriends talking about their visits there with their boyfriends. Jane kept looking for the right opportunity to take a boy there, and now it finally arrived. She could barely stop herself from "squeeing" out loud._

_Jane started to move faster, with Ryan easily keeping up. She couldn't wait to get there. It was just up the street and around the corner. There! There were the trees, just up ahead. And now she could see the fence. Great. She was practically running by the time she got there, and jumped over the low fence easily. She was rather surprised, then, when Ryan didn't follow right behind her. A few steps in, she stopped and turned around to see what the hold-up was. She knew that it couldn't be a problem with him being able to get over the fence._

_Ryan was standing on the other side of the fence, looking around nervously. "What is this place? Is it like a park or something?"_

_Jane walked back to the fence. "It's just a – there's a gazebo not too far. The kids from my school go there all the time. I've never heard of anybody getting caught. The people don't care." She smiled at him and took his hand in both of hers and pulled. "Come on!"_

_Ryan looked at her for a moment, then broke out in his own big smile. After a quick look around to make sure nobody saw them, he jumped over the fence to join her. From there, they ran hand-in-hand through the woods to the gazebo. When they got there, they dropped onto one of the benches, panting and smiling and laughing. That was fun._

_Jane sat there for a minute, catching her breath and watching Ryan, hoping that he'd make a move now that they were here. And after a moment he did. He slid closer to her on the bench and gently reached out and put a hand on the back of her head and pulled her in for a kiss. A deep, long, soft, wonderful kiss. Jane had kissed boys before, but it never felt like that. It left her breathless and her heart beating a mile a minute._

_After that kiss, Ryan pulled away a little and looked deeply into her eyes. "Okay?"_

_Jane took this opportunity to take off her glasses, to get them out of the way. Then she let him know it was more than okay. She reached out to touch him, too, and leaned in to kiss him. He responded with an even deeper kiss and put one arm around her waist to pull her in closer. Jane put her hands under his shirt and around onto his back. His tank top was so soft on top of his firm muscles._

_When they broke apart to catch their breaths, Jane took a moment to study Ryan. God, he was so cute. His face, and his arms... Jane took a deep breath and hesitantly reached out to push his over-shirt off his shoulder. She wanted to see those shoulders. Ryan saw what she was doing and quickly took off the shirt himself. Jane smiled. Seeing him there in just his tank top. Those shoulders and those arms, and the chest muscles she could see the outline of... She could feel herself warming up and that throb starting down below._

_She leaned into him for another kiss. This time he slowly slid his hand up under her shirt towards her bra. And she slid her hands underneath his tank top. As Ryan began to massage her boobs through her bra, she could feel herself getting more excited. It was all going so perfectly. And he was such a gentleman, making sure to go slow. She knew that the next step was to unhook her bra, and if he didn't reach around to do it soon, she was going to do it herself._

_But unfortunately, things didn't get to go any further, because just at that point, they both heard the crackle of a police radio, and they jumped apart. Jane looked around towards the sound and saw the light from a couple of flashlights not too far away._

_Ryan said what she was thinking, "Oh, shit."_

_They both jumped up and started straightening and putting back on their clothes. They were still in the process of doing that when the two police officers stepped into the gazebo and shined the flashlights on them._

"_Hold it right there, kids." The first cop said._

_The second one followed it up. "You two are trespassing, here. We're going to have to take you in. Finish getting dressed. Now."_

_Jane hurried to finish tucking in her t-shirt and reached around for her glasses, keeping an eye on Ryan who was pulling on his over-shirt. When she turned back around, the first cop was shining his flashlight in her face._

"_Hold on. Aren't you the Chief's daughter? Jane, right?"_

_Oh, shit. She babbled nervously, "Um, yeah, that's me. I'm Jane. Yeah."_

_The second cop whistled. After exchanging a look with the first cop, he told her, "Well, come on, both of you. I guess we'll have to just take you down to the station and call your father. Come on, let's go."_

_The first officer started ushering the two of them back in the direction that the cops came from. As they walked to the officers' car, Jane took a look at Ryan. He was looking at her with wide eyes. She guessed that he wasn't really happy to learn that about her dad. That he was the chief of police. She hoped that it wouldn't scare him away. She really wanted to see him again._

.oOo.

Jane's father continued to study her and Ryan for a moment after she finished telling her story. Long enough that Jane started to squirm, wishing that he would say something.

Finally, he spoke. "Well, honey, that was quite a story. Let's see if I have this straight. You pick up a boy at a party. A party that you went to after lying to your mother and me about where you would be tonight, by the way. You go with this boy to the Murphys' gazebo, trespassing on their property. And you proceeded to make out with this guy that you barely know."

Jane glanced over at Ryan then back to her father. "Um, yeah, pretty much."

"Jane, you know you could have been arrested for trespassing." He paused for a moment. "You _both_ could have."

Jane looked guiltily at Ryan. Oh, god. She could have gotten him arrested. How could she be so thoughtless.

Her father leaned forward, took a deep breath, and continued, softer. "You need to understand, baby. The Murphys are getting really fed up with all the kids using their gazebo like that, and they've been insisting that we do something about it. Mrs. Murphy is on the school board, and the department is getting pressure to arrest anyone caught trespassing on their property."

Jane looked down and whispered, "I didn't know."

"Well, now you do. The only reason why you weren't arrested – you and you friend – is because of who I am. You probably don't think it would have been any big deal since it is just a misdemeanor, but it would have been on your record until you turn eighteen. Understand?"

"I'm sorry, Daddy."

Her father sighed and sat back. "Okay, honey. We'll continue this discussion at home. You, me, and your mother. And just to let you know, you _will_ be grounded. For a while."

Jane nodded, feeling guilty. She wasn't looking forward to facing her mother later. Her father could be tough, but her mother... Well, she'd been a cop's wife for twenty-something years, enough said.

* * *

To Be Continued 


	5. Chapter 5

**Title:** A Spot Of Trouble  
**Disclaimer:** I own nothing related to _The O.C._. Not for profit.  
**Description:** Ryan gets into a spot of trouble with a girl. (Set in early season 1.)

* * *

**Chapter 5**

After he finished with Jane, Jane's father turned to Ryan. Oh, god, Ryan thought, now it's my turn.

"Ryan, is it? And you're sixteen?"

Ryan nodded. "Yes, sir."

"You're a minor, so that means that you must have parents –" Ryan figured he must have done something to react to that subconsciously because after the briefest of pauses the Chief of Police continued with, "Or somebody else who's responsible for you."

Ryan nodded, hoping that he wasn't going with this where Ryan thought he was going.

The Chief got up, went over to his desk, and stopped in front of the phone. "I'd like you to call them and ask them to come down to get you. Here – I'll get you an outside line."

The Chief picked up the phone and pressed a single button, either an 8 or an 9, Ryan thought. Then he held the phone out to Ryan, clearly indicating for him to come over and take it.

After a quick look at Jane, Ryan reluctantly got up and went over and took the phone. As Jane's father went back over to sit in the chair that he'd been sitting in, Ryan tried to think about what he was going to say to Sandy. Although, no matter what he said, it wasn't going to sound good. He Ryan took a deep breath and started dialing the Cohens' home phone number.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Seth, could you get your dad for me?"

"Ryan! Ryan, where are you, man? You just missed _The Black Ninja, _totally the best B-movie of 2003."

"Seth –"

"You know, if you get home soon, we can still have our ninja marathon –"

Ryan finally resorted to raising his voice to get Seth's attention. "_Seth!_ I need you to go get your dad. _Now_. It's urgent."

"Geez, man, you didn't have to yell."

Ryan finally heard Seth put down the phone and he breathed a sigh of relief. Then he noticed Jane's father looking at him curiously. So he put his hand over the mouthpiece and explained, "Seth's parents are my legal guardians."

The Chief nodded his understanding. Ryan hoped he wouldn't have to explain any further. Ryan looked away, out the window. He was going to have enough explaining to do tonight to explain this mess to Sandy. As he waited for Sandy to pick up the phone, he tried to think about what he was going to say.

Whatever he came up with, though, went out the window when he heard, "Hello? Ryan?"

Oh, god, it was Kirsten. "Um... oh... hey... hi."

"I'm sorry but Sandy's out wining and dining a new client for the law firm. Can I handle it? Seth said it was urgent..."

Ryan sighed and dropped down into the desk chair, dropping his head into his free hand. How could he explain this to Kirsten? "Um... well... I'm... um... I'm at the police station."

Ryan could hear Kirsten's shock. "What? Oh, my god, Ryan! Are you okay? What happened? Are you under arrest?"

"No, no." Ryan glanced at the Chief of Police. "I'm not under arrest." Not yet, anyway. "I just need someone to come and pick me up. I thought Sandy –"

"Could I come? I hate to bother him –"

"No!" Oh, god, he hadn't meant to raise his voice at Kirsten. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I mean, that is, I think Sandy should come. I might need, you know..." Oh, god.

"You might need a lawyer."

Ryan sighed again. "Yeah."

Ryan heard Kirsten sigh also. "Okay, Ryan. I'll call him and let him know that you need him. I'm sure he'll be right there."

"Oh! Um... I'm not... I'm not in Newport."

"You're not?"

"No, um, I'm in Long Beach."

"Long Beach? I thought you said you were hanging out with some friends from work. In Newport."

"Um..."

Kirsten sighed again. "Okay, Ryan, we'll talk about that later, when you're home. Right now, I'm going to need directions to give to Sandy, you know, to the police station there."

"Hold on." Ryan put his hand over the mouthpiece and looked over at Jane's father. "She's going to need directions. From Newport Beach."

Jane's father got up and started walking towards the desk with his hand out for the phone. "Let me talk to her."

Ryan got up from the desk chair and handed him the phone, then continued on to go back sitting on the couch next to Jane. The Chief sat down in his chair and was about to start talking into the phone when he covered the mouthpiece himself and whispered to Ryan, "What's her name?"

As Ryan sat down, he told him, "Kirsten Cohen."

The Chief went ahead and started talking to Kirsten on the phone. Ryan could only hear his side of the conversation. While they were talking, Jane took Ryan's hand, and Ryan hung on to it, giving Jane a grateful smile for the gesture.

"Mrs. Cohen? This is Michael Garibaldi. I'm the Chief of Police here in Long Beach... No, no, nothing like that." He looked over at Ryan and Jane. "Your, um, Ryan was with my daughter Jane... Trespassing... No, we're not filing charges. I'd just like either you or your husband to come down... That's fine... I can give you directions."

The Chief gave Kirsten the directions and then ended the call. Immediately after that, a police officer stuck his head in the office, asking for a moment of the Chief's time. He went with the officer, leaving Ryan and Jane alone in his office, again, to wait, this time for Sandy to show up. Ryan figured it would probably be at least a good 45 minutes to an hour.

Once her father was gone, Jane turned to Ryan. "I'm _so_ sorry I got you in trouble."

Ryan shook his head. "It's not your fault."

Jane shook her head back. "But I'm the one who insisted that we go to the gazebo. You didn't want to..."

Ryan took her hand in both of his. "It's _not_ your fault. I knew we were trespassing. I could have said _no_. It was my decision to go with you, and I'll deal with the consequences. Really. Don't worry about it."

Even though she didn't look convinced, Jane dropped the matter and didn't say anything more, for which Ryan was grateful. This situation reminded him too much of stealing that car with his brother. All this time, he'd been saying to himself that it was really his brother who stole the car, not him. It wasn't his idea. He didn't want to do it. But just like here, he could have said _no_. He didn't have to go with Trey, but he did. He chose to go. He was responsible for his own actions.

Ryan slouched down on the couch and put his head back, settling in for the long wait for Sandy. God, he couldn't wait for all of this to be over. Which could realistically be a long time. If Jane's father ran his name through the computer and saw that he was on probation, well, committing a misdemeanor was definitely a violation of his probation. As soon as they found out, they could arrest him right then, and he could go off to juvie and never go home. Not for another two years, anyway. Ryan sighed. He really hoped it wouldn't come to that. But it could.

That's why he really needed Sandy to come and not Kirsten. Just in case. And maybe Sandy could even argue them out of sending him to juvie. Maybe just extend his probation, or add more restrictions, or add community service, or _something_. As much as he dreaded seeing Sandy – his disappointment, his anger about Ryan getting himself into trouble again – he also couldn't wait for Sandy to get there. Ryan really needed him there, and not just for the legal stuff.

* * *

To Be Continued 


	6. Chapter 6

**Title:** A Spot Of Trouble  
**Disclaimer:** I own nothing related to _The O.C._. Not for profit.  
**Description:** Ryan gets into a spot of trouble with a girl. (Set in early season 1.)

**Author's Note:** Well, this is it. This is the end. I want to thank everybody so much for their comments and reviews!

* * *

**Chapter 6**

For Ryan, the wait for Sandy to get there lasted forever. He kept checking his watch, and it didn't seem to be moving as fast as it should be. He knew that it would have gone even slower if Jane wasn't there to distract him. She didn't have to be. Her father told her that she could go home. Her mother or her brother would come pick her up. But she chose to stay and keep Ryan company while he waited for his parental unit to show up. That's what she said, "parental unit." She could be funny, when she wanted to be.

Ryan couldn't tell Jane enough how grateful he was that she was there, keeping him distracted by talking. All the usual small talk that you did when you first met someone and wanted to get to know them. Somehow they had skipped over that part earlier. Ryan smiled when he thought about what they had skipped ahead to. He realized then that his initial assessment of her as shy was a little off. And the way she stood up to her father, and defended Ryan to him and everything. She was quite a girl.

But still, her presence wasn't enough to keep Ryan's mind off the clock and what was coming up for him when Sandy did get there. Not to mention that he was thinking that any time, the cops could come in and arrest him for violating his probation. Although the more time passed and that didn't happen, the more Ryan became convinced that it wouldn't. Unless they were just waiting for Sandy to get there to do it. That was a cheery thought. And he definitely didn't want to ask.

Okay, 45 minutes. Sandy should be here soon.

1 hour. Sandy should be here any minute. Or Kirsten maybe. Or even both of them. It was only a 45 minute drive from Newport to Long Beach, but Ryan figured it might take a little time for Kirsten to call Sandy, then Sandy to get away from the client and get on the road, etc. So, yeah, any minute.

1 hour and 15 minutes. Well, maybe Kirsten had trouble reaching Sandy. Maybe he had his cell phone off or something. Or, maybe he couldn't get away from his wine-and-dine right away. Or, you know, maybe the directions were bad and he got lost. Or he got stuck in traffic. Who knew? There must be some good explanation, right?

* * *

Luckily, Ryan was saved from becoming a complete basket case by Sandy's arrival. As before when Jane's father arrived, they could see the shadows of two men through the door and hear two men's voices right outside before they actually came in. 

Jane again said to Ryan, "My dad."

This time Ryan could smile and say back to her, "And Sandy."

They both stood up, waiting for their "parental units" to come into the office. All Ryan felt at this point was relief to see Sandy, or well, hear him at least. He knew that in a minute or so he might not be so happy, but for now, he let himself go ahead and be happy.

After a few moments, the door opened and Jane's father and Ryan's guardian finally walked in. Ryan studied Sandy carefully as he came in, but couldn't tell anything about his mood, not even after Sandy made eye contact. Ryan guessed that he was keeping himself neutral in front of Jane and her father. He figured that he'd know soon enough how mad Sandy was.

Once the two men were inside, Jane's father made the introductions. "Sandy, this is my daughter. Jane, this is Mr. Cohen."

It struck Ryan that the two of them seemed to be pretty friendly, on a first-name basis and all. He wondered what that meant.

Jane smiled shyly at Sandy. "Hi."

Sandy nodded at her. "Hello, Jane."

Jane's father opened the door wider and stepped a little to the side. "Honey, why don't we let Mr. Cohen and Ryan talk. Come on."

Sandy came further into the room to give her access to the door. Jane started to leave, but then stopped and turned.

"Mr. Cohen?" Once Sandy looked at her, she continued, in a rush, "I just wanted you to know, this was totally my fault, not Ryan's. I wanted to go to the gazebo. It was my idea. He didn't even want to go –"

Ryan interrupted her. "That's not exactly true –"

Sandy interrupted both of them. "Thank you, Jane. I'll keep that in mind."

Jane's father ushered her out. "Honey, let's go."

Ryan and Jane shared one last look before she left. Once the Garibaldis were gone and the door closed behind them, Ryan took a deep breath and faced Sandy. Okay, now he was looking a little pissed off.

"Sit down, Ryan." Sandy said in that stern voice of his.

Okay, make that very pissed off. Ryan knew he was in a lot of trouble. Ryan sat back down on the couch where he had been sitting, and Sandy took the chair across from it.

Ryan wanted to clear something up first. "What Jane said – it isn't her fault –"

Sandy interrupted him. "I know."

There was that pissed-off voice again. Ryan knew when to shut up. So he did and waited for Sandy to start.

"Chief Garibaldi and I have been having a little chat about the events of this evening." Well, at least that explained why Sandy was late getting to Ryan. He was talking with the Chief. And that explained their friendliness. "And he told me what Jane told him about what happened tonight. But I have a few questions."

Ryan held his breath and waited.

"First, what are you doing in Long Beach in the first place? I thought you were hanging out with your friends from work?"

Ryan looked down and wrung his hands. He figured he'd have to explain this sooner or later. "Um, well, yeah, we were hanging out. At a party. Here in Long Beach."

"When you told us you'd be in Newport, did you know you'd be coming here?"

"Um... yeah?"

"So you lied to us?"

Ryan looked away and didn't answer that. He figured he didn't have to.

"And at this party, were you drinking?"

Ryan looked back at Sandy. "Just beer. I'm not drunk or anything."

Sandy nodded. "You do know that beer counts, right? In the 'no drinking' rule that Kirsten and I have that you know all about?"

Ryan looked away again. Strike two.

"And at this party you pick up a girl and go with her to make out on somebody's private property, trespassing on that somebody's private property. Do I have that right?"

Ryan looked back at Sandy.

"Did you _know_ that you were trespassing? Before the police showed up and told you?"

Ryan cleared his throat. "Um... I guess. Yeah, I did." Great. Strike three.

Sandy leaned forward. "And you did it anyway. What the hell were you thinking? No, don't answer that. I know what you were thinking with. Jane is a very pretty girl."

Ryan looked back down.

Sandy sighed in exasperation. "Still, how could you be so reckless? You _know_ you can't afford to do things like this. Not while you're on probation and while Child Services is watching us like a hawk. Remember what I said -- we are always one mistake away from somebody taking you away? Well, you just made a doozy tonight. And you know that you could be in juvie right now, too, right? You're lucky that you didn't get arrested tonight. You would have if Jane wasn't the daughter of the Chief of Police."

Ryan held his breath waiting for the other shoe to drop. When Sandy didn't say anything more, Ryan finally pulled his eyes up to look at him.

"I'm sorry."

Sandy sighed and leaned back. "Look, Ryan, I know what you did was just a stupid teenage boy thing to do, but you can't afford to do stupid teenage things, not now."

Ryan nodded and looked down. After another minute of silence, Ryan looked at Sandy again.

"What happens now? I mean, like what about my probation? Is Jane's father going to –"

"He doesn't know." Ryan raised his eyebrows at that. "I didn't tell him, and I'm assuming you didn't." Ryan shook his head. "And he didn't run you through the computer. He can't really, if he wants to protect his daughter. He knows that if he runs you through and finds anything, he'll be obligated to report this. And he wants to keep this quiet, keep it unofficial, so it doesn't show up on his daughter's record."

Ryan nodded, relieved. It turned out to be _good_ luck that it was the daughter of the Chief of Police who caught his eye, if it had been some other girl... Well, Ryan didn't want to think about that.

"And Child Services?"

Sandy shook his head. "There's no reason for them to know about tonight, either."

Ryan breathed a sigh of relief, but there was one last thing that he had to say...

Ryan looked Sandy in the eye. "Look, I'm really sorry. I just, I don't know, I wasn't thinking. I know it wasn't Jane's fault. I chose to go with her. I know I screwed up. Big time. And I..." Ryan looked down. "I'd understand if you want me to go. I know I promised I wouldn't get into any more trouble..."

Sandy's voice and face softened. "You're not going anywhere, Ryan. Except home with us, which you won't be leaving for a while because you're going to be grounded, for a long time."

Ryan looked up at Sandy, wanting to believe him, wanting to believe that they still wanted him, even after all this. He looked sincere...

"Listen, Ryan, when Kirsten and I agreed to be your guardians, we knew that there would be some bumps in the road. We asked you to promise to stay out of trouble, because we figured that that way, you'd at least try. We pretty much figured that you wouldn't always succeed. And we're not going to kick you out for it. Ground you, yes, throw you out, no. As long as you learn from it, and keep trying to stay out of trouble..."

"I promise to keep trying. I don't _want_ to get into trouble, I just..."

"I know. I know." Sandy smiled. "Well, good." Sandy stood up and Ryan followed him. "We'll discuss this more at home, you, me, and Kirsten. Believe me, we'll discuss this."

Ryan smiled ruefully.

Sandy clapped him on the back. "Let's go home."

* * *

When Ryan followed Sandy out of the Chief of Police's office, he found that Jane and her father were out there waiting for them. 

Jane came up to him. "Everything go okay?"

Ryan smiled and shrugged. "About the same as with your dad."

"Grounded?"

"Yup."

Sandy went over and shook hands with Jane's dad. "Thank you, Michael."

"No problem, Sandy. I know what it is like to have teenagers. You should see this one's older brother."

Sandy smiled. "I can imagine."

Meanwhile, Ryan had taken Jane's hand and was asking her, "Can I see you again?"

Her father overheard that and answered for her. "Not until she's done being grounded."

Sandy chimed in, "Ditto, Ryan. And only if you two promise not to get each other into trouble again."

They both said, simultaneously, "Promise."

Sandy and Michael laughed.

Sandy started walking out. "We need to get home." And to Ryan, "Come on, Romeo."

* * *

**The End.**


End file.
